Jealous
by Anytha84
Summary: In which Simmons learns of Martha and Leo's pet name Little Bear and Fitz learns of Agent Sitwell and Jemma's interest in men of her height but heavier. R
1. Chapter 1

I swear I don't have a clue of how this one came out.. It will be a couple of chapters long, I think; probably 2-3.

Give me some feedback please: I'm pretty sure I've got some of the characters OOC...

Hope you guys enjoy it.. ;)

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN AGENTS OF SHIELD.

* * *

_Jealous_

-:-

Taken from the Oxford online dictionary:

**jealous**. Pronunciation:/ˈdʒɛləs/_adjective. _ English: from Old French '_gelos'_, from medieval Latin '_zelosus'._

Definition #1: feeling or showing an envious resentment of someone or their achievements, possessions, or perceived advantages_._

-:-

When Simmons got to the lounge room after her shower, she didn't expect to find the scene currently playing in front of her eyes.

Skye was laughing loudly, almost on the verge of toppling down from the stool she was sitting on. Agent Ward was next to her, casually leaning on the bar's glass table, a glass of Scotch she presumed (alcoholics have never been her thing) in his hand and – here's the thing that left her utterly flabbergasted- grinning.

Fitz was seated on the armchair nearby, his back to her; judging by the blotchy red that colored his nape, he was blushing furiously.

Skye 's eyes lit up as soon as she saw her by the door.

"Simmons!" she called delightfully and beckoned her to get closer, "You really have to hear this!"

Jemma approached her team mates, wondering what was going on.

They were having a rather quiet period now: no impromptu missions or whatsoever in the last weeks after Fitz and Ward's two-man mission. Nevertheless, it was unusual -though quite pleasant, she mused- to see this cheerful mood on the Bus.

Skye was grinning, Ward smiled at her from his glass and Fitz.. She stared at him.

Fitz's face was bright red and when his eyes met her questioning ones, he immediately averted his gaze.

Brow raising at her partner's behavior, Jemma looks at her other team mates.

"What do I have to really hear?" she asked Skye.

The brunette grinned wildly. The bio-chemist had the fleeting sensation that she must have had quite a few drinks and was tipsy.

"My S.O here-" Skye gestured with a hand vaguely in Ward's direction. "-was telling us some.. _details_ about the mission in South Ossetia."

"Oh.." Jemma replied, taking a seat in the armchair in front of Fitz. She heard a soft scraping sound on the little table between them and saw her partner slide a bottle of Guinness towards her. She looked at him: he had one too, untouched.

"Thanks.." she whispered softly with a smile. He nodded, lips quirking slightly in a smile before looking away again. She arched a brow again, fighting back a frown.

Things were still a bit edgy, at times, between them... She had hoped that after his mission, they could have gone back to be what they were before but there was still a long road ahead of them..

"Details of which sort?" she asked, finger sliding on the bottle at her side. It was cool, just outside the refrigerator: just as she liked it. He knew it, of course...

"Of how Fitz gained his new name." Skye was barely restraining her laughter and Jemma looked at her blankly.

"New name?" she repeated. She heard Fitz mutter something intelligible under his breath but didn't turn to him.

"Little Bear.." Skye said this with a horrible East European accent and then started laughing again. Her blank expression must have pitied Ward because he took a sip of his drink and straightened up.

"We had a small...impasse at the beginning of our mission." he explained, "My contact was dead and we were pretty much in the coven of these Russian gang who thought we wanted to deal with the separatists."

Jemma nodded. She knew that much of the story: Fitz had regaled her with a rather colorful tale of Russian mobsters threatening them and nearly scraping it out alive from the boundary lines under multiple gun fires.

She had listened with a mixture of amusement and concern, knowing that some things were true (thus her fear that he had faced all of this. Without her) while others weren't. She had assumed that the whole mobster part had been a bit of a folkloric addition ..but she had been wrong.

"We were in a tight spot and I was sure that we would have to deal with something very unpleasant to get out-"

"Unpleasant?!" Fitz exclaimed, looking at the other man with a bewildered expression, "Now _that's_ an understatement. You were imagining gruesome torture ways and asking _me_ how high my pain tolerance was!"

Ward glanced at Fitz and then turned to Simmons, completely ignoring the engineer's outburst.

"Anyway.. We were tied down when this woman comes out. Turns out she was the leader of that gang."

"Really? A woman?" Jemma said, eyes wide. This was turning out to sound like some action movie. And, she realized, Fitz never mentioned a woman in this mission...

"Yes, sided with these thugs with guns and menacing looks. I couldn't convince her that we weren't working for the separatists and we were going to get shot, when Fitz here-" He nodded at the younger man. "-worked his magic."

"Oh..yes, I know that part." Jemma remarked and turned to her partner with a smile. "He shorted out the fuse box while you were tied down."

Fitz blushed slightly and took his beer bottle in his hand, ready to take a sip.

"Oh..Did he tell you how he fixed everything?" Skye asked, making Fitz put the bottle back down and glare at her. The hacker stuck her tongue out at him in retort.

"Er-" Jemma watched the interaction with mild confusion, ignoring a sudden twinge in her stomach. "I know that he fixed the fuse box and then negotiated your trip beyond the boundary lines."

"Passing on his negotiating skills that _definitely_ need to be bettered.." Ward remarked, "He fixed the fuse box with the help of some of the Russians... and made friends with them."

"Really?" Jemma turned to Fitz. He was turning red again.

"Well, friends is a broad word-" he started but was cut off by Ward.

"Seriously.. You were on first name basis with the leader and her side kick."

"That's no-"

"You called them Martha and Vlad while we were running away, Fitz."

"Yes, but-"

"You drank a shot of vodka with the guy, Vladimir!"

"I couldn't refuse now, could I?" Fitz's retorts were getting weaker.

"Martha had a soft spot on you: she kept calling you Little Bear as you worked. And you called her sweetheart." Ward looked at him. "Seriously? Not friends?"

Skye laughed out loudly again.

Jemma had watched the two men banter with mild amusement until Ward's last statement.

Fitz called this Martha woman sweetheart.

And this Martha woman called him Little Bear.

Something erupted inside her stomach. Something warm, blazing and utterly new. Unknown.

Taken slightly by surprise by this feeling, she snatched her beer and took a sip, hoping that the cold liquid would calm this sudden fire in her body.

Fitz had never called her anything less than Jemma or Simmons in all these years. Never called her in any other way.

Never called her in _any_ affectionate way.

And _she_ never called him in any way that wasn't his surname. She rarely called him with his name nowadays.

Jemma wasn't even sure why this bothered her so much. No wait- she did know. She just didn't want to admit that her platonic/friendly feelings towards her partner had changed to some unknown/romantic ones.

And now, some Russian woman who leads a mobster gang gets to be called sweetheart by Fitz, minutes after meeting him? And she, in turn, gives him a pet name?

Like that?

To_ her_ partner? _Her_ Leo Fitz?

For some odd reason, her mind was imagining this Martha woman looking very much like Natasha Romanoff (in her whole deadly, brilliant _and_ sexy glory) and it wasn't helping placate the flames in her stomach.

She took a long swig of beer.

* * *

Please, leave a review.. :)


	2. Chapter 2

Wow..guys.. The response to this story has been.. mind-blowing. I swear, I'm so flattered by all of this that you can't even imagine it.

As I said in the last chapter, I have no clue as to how this fic started writing itself but I'm following the flow and hoping that you'll appreciate it. I hope I'm not getting anyone too OOC..

Please, give me some feedback.. :)

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN AGENTS OF SHIELD

* * *

_Jealous_

-:-

Taken from the Oxford online dictionary:

**jealous. **Pronunciation:/ˈdʒɛləs/ _adjective. _**Origin.**Middle English: from Old French '_gelos'_, from medieval Latin '_zelosus'._

Definition #_2: __feeling or showing a resentful suspicion that one's partner is attracted to or involved with someone else._

-:-

Bloody Hell.

Bloody _Buggering_ Hell.

When he and Simmons had left the lab -later than predicted, but that prototype they were working on needed to be finished- he had hoped to take a good, hot shower, get something for dinner and maybe relax a bit watching a movie.

And doing all of this together with his partner would have been perfect.

Well, not all. Not the shower part.

Not that he would have actually minded if it had happened but -_No_. He really had to cut that stream of thoughts. _Immediately_.

This was happening too often lately...

...Anyway..

Fitz didn't really envision his night to be like this.

He had come out of his bunk ready to make something for dinner. He wasn't that much of a cook -not as Jemma was- but he thought that making some simple sandwiches were enough.

He didn't expect to find Skye and Ward by the bar, drinking and talking. Rather amiably, he had to add.

He didn't expect them to be talking about the mission in Ossetia. He didn't imagine to be invited to sit and then find himself on the armchair with a beer that he hadn't even started since he hadn't dined and Skye laughing at the whole Martha/Vladimir/Little Bear incident.

He was hoping(_praying_) that Ward hadn't talked about anything else previously.

Like him talking about Jemma the whole time.

Really, what was he thinking? Talking about your so-called partner 24/7, recalling amusing stories about her, telling how she calls his inventions... Seriously, even Ward with his teaspoon-sized emotional range, could wonder about it...besides being annoyed and all.

He was trying to find a way to leave when Jemma arrived. And joined them.

And he suddenly felt a combination of dread and elation all together. It was a constant whenever he saw her and was with her. Which meant.._always_.

He had to do something about these feelings. But even his analytical mind couldn't come up with a quick solution to the problem: What to do when you realize that you're probably(_surely_) in love with your best friend/partner.

He couldn't even meet her stare when he felt all these emotions drowning him. How the bloody hell was he supposed to talk to her about them?

Tonight the dread was doubled because of Skye's source of hilarity: himself. He just wanted all of this to end. Now.

But no. He had to endure this torture of Skye laughing and Ward pointing out how he..fraternized with the Russian mobsters. He started to ignore the brunette talking, making it sound like a buzz in his ears now.

At least, Jemma wasn't laughing with them. He stole a glance at her and saw that she just looked mildly confused: her brows were slightly scrunched, eyes adorably puzzled and a half smile dancing on her lips.

'Fitz, get a grip..' he chastised himself.

His hold on the beer bottle tightened. He had to stop doing this. Observing her every move and feature to the point that he could trace it out blindfolded.

He was about to take a sip of his Guinness -dinner be damned at this point- when he saw Jemma tense. He watched her eyes widen slightly in something similar to surprise and the color drain a bit from her face. She took her bottle of beer and drank.

'What the hell just happened?' he wondered.

He knew her enough to know all of her quirks and moods. But this one was a complete novelty for him.

He was about to ask her what was going on, concern on her well-being taking over immediately ever since her near death experience when Skye's voice got to him.

"Fitz, I swear, I'll start calling you Little Bear from now on." she announced with a wide grin. She really must have drunk a bit too much. He had never seen her so gleeful. "I haven't laughed so much in..well, forever."

He frowned.

"Well, I'd rather appreciate if you didn't." he remarked, putting his beer down. Seriously, he'll never get to drink it..

"Come on! It's really cute as a pet name! And it shows how good you were in fraternizing with the enemy! Your mind was working clearly even in dire situations."

He rolled his eyes at that. Trust Skye to put S.H.I.E.L.D agents' attitudinal characteristics in _this_. He glanced at Ward and saw him smirk above his glass' rim.

"You certainly are better than Simmons in that." Skye added.

Fitz looked at her in confusion.

"What?" he asked. From the corner of his eye, he saw Jemma hastily put her beer bottle down and wrangle her hands together. Her typical nervous behavior..

"Skye, I don't think that really matt-"

"Seriously, Simmons.. I adore you and everything but you turn into a blubbering mess when you're under pressure. But _flirting_ under pressure? That's a big no-no."

Fitz's mind registered this and went blank.

Flirting? _Jemma_ flirting?

With whom?

He turned to his partner, a twinge tickling his stomach, and saw that she had turned into a bright shade of red.

"What?" he asked again. Simmons looked at him with wide eyes.

"I-well... We- We were trying to get the information about your mission.." she stammered.

"Yes.." he conceded, utterly confused. He pointed at the two women. "You two were planning to hack the system through a control panel." Ward nodded wearily in front of him, probably still incredulous that they were safe because of this insane plan.

Fitz looked at Jemma again.

"And when you got caught at the panel by Agent Sitwell, you shot him with the Night-Night gun." he concluded. He was still totally incredulous that Jemma had done _that_.

Simmons nodded slowly.

"Yeah.. but that was at then end of the whole let's-try-to-sweet-talk-Agent-Sitwell fiasco." Skye commented airily.

Fitz stared at her.

Wait-_what_?

"What?" he said again. His mind wasn't comprehending this situation correctly.. Something warm stirred at the pit of his stomach: warm and unknown.

"Well.. Simmons got caught by Sitwell. I told her to calm down and try to talk to him...and she just started to loose it _completely_."

"That's not true!" Jemma remarked, cheeks still red, "I was trying to-"

Skye rolled her eyes.

"Let's not even talk about your attempt to be vague and the mistaken bathroom route excuse.."

Both Fitz and Ward stared at Simmons and she blushed again.

"But..really.." Skye straightened up on her stool and looked at Simmons. "You certainly have a gorgeous head. I like men that are about my height but heavier than me." She mimicked an English accent (failing miserably, Fitz had to say..) "Seriously, Simmons?"

Fitz stared at Skye.

Jemma really said _that_ to Agent Sitwell? He knew that she wasn't good in making things up at the moment. So...something of him must have struck her to make her say that.

He tried to focus in recalling Sitwell's features, wondering if there was something that Jemma could find appealing in him. Sturdy build, eye glasses, bald head.. Nothing that he could classify as... fanciable. Then again, he really didn't know who Jemma might find attractive. It's one of the few talks they never had..and probably never _will_ have.

Could that be her type of man?

_Agent Sitwell_?

Fitz felt the warmth in him growing, fueled by some bizarre need to squash Sitwell's _gorgeous_ head to a bloody pulp.

He looked at Simmons. She was turning a darker shade of red and was moving her hands wildly in front of her as she spoke to Skye.

"Whatever else could I say?" she demanded, tone turning slightly shrill in her embarrassment. "I was panicking..!"

"Yeah..I sort of noticed." Skye replied dryly. "We really have to do some coach-training on that. Anyway, the guy got suspicious after you started loosing it. He was into you at the beginning – or at least, interested. I mean, he actually told you to call him Jasper, remember?"

"Yes bu-"

"A guy like him -a man who's a superior officer- doesn't say something like that so easily. Especially not to lower leveled officer." Skye turned to Ward. "Right?"

The man shrugged.

On the other hand, Fitz's mind was in overdrive with all of this information.

Jasper?

First name basis after -what? Two minutes that they have met?

And, most of all: _Interested?_

He could almost imagine the scene in his mind.

"You can call me Jasper." For some unknown reason, Sitwell's voice was suave in his head. And the man was showing off his Level 8 badge. Whoever the hell cared if he was a superior officer?!

He felt something stir from inside him. Something that wanted to literally crush Sitwell. Hot white fire was consuming his mind and body.

So, Sitwell might be Jemma's type (and he really didn't want to think about it..) but it didn't matter.

He, Leo Fitz, had been there first.

He knew her better than anyone else.

He knew her every quirk and behavior.

He loved her more than anyone.

No one could just walk in and take away _his_ Jemma.

Not even superior officer Sitwell.

Even if he had a gorgeous head.

Fitz reached for his beer and downed half of it.

* * *

Please, leave a review.. :)


	3. Chapter 3

Can I just say how wonderful you guys are? The response to this totally random story was incredible... Thank you so much.

As for the story, I'm letting inspiration lead me on..and I currently have no clue as to where it's taking me. I think that this should be finished by the next chapter (unless some other random thought strikes me and makes me write more..)

As usual, leave me some feedback. I love talking to you guys.. :)

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN AGENTS OF SHIELD.

* * *

_Jealous_

-:-

_Taken from the Oxford online dictionary:_

_**jealous. **Pronunciation:/ˈdʒɛləs/ adjective. **Origin. **Middle English: from Old French 'gelos', from medieval Latin 'zelosus'._

_Definition #3: fiercely protective of one's rights or possessions_

-:-

Skye looked at FitzSimmons and failed to hide a smirk.

Fitz had just downed half of his beer as the most seasoned of pub drinkers, copying what Simmons had done a little while ago. She knew that they could hold their alcohol -_how_ those two managed it though, was still beyond her- so this sudden thirst was just a reaction to something else.

Namely, a _little_ something else provoked by the _little_ scheme that she and Ward were weaving out, hoping that the two genius scientists would just fall for it.

And as she saw the furiously embarrassed flushed face of one along with the equally furiously jealous face of the other, she knew that the geniuses were done for. Seriously, it looked like there were small rainstorm clouds all over their heads. She _almost_ felt guilty..

She sneaked a peak at Ward who casually glanced at her from the rim of his glass. He had his poker face but she could see the glint of mirth in his eyes.

Suppressing a grin, Skye raised an eyebrow suggestively and he nodded slightly.

Operation Get FitzSimmons-Together part 2 was about to start.

-:-

Jemma felt as though she was seriously going to learn what self-combustion meant. She had felt the blood rush to her cheeks so many times in the past half an hour that she feared to know what was the color of her face now.

Of course, Skye had to bring up her pathetic attempt to flirt with Agent Sitwell. She wasn't really an expert in that field. Hell, she didn't have a bloody clue of how to do it!

So when she found herself there, standing in front of Sitwell with the panel open and no logical explanation as to _what_ she was doing there, she improvised.

And when she did that -very few times, thankfully- she thought of her partner. Her partner who had always been slightly taller and sturdier than her. Her partner who had the most beautiful mind she had ever met.

Her partner who was in danger while she facing this superior agent that didn't look anything like him and that she had to distract.

So she started to modify her thoughts on Fitz to apply them to Agent Sitwell but the results had been shameful and thanks god for the Night-Night gun in her bag...

It almost was as though Fitz had been there with her and had handed her the solution to her problem.

She stole a glance at him and saw that he was drinking his beer. His own face was quite flushed and he had a rather..hardened look in his eyes.

Slightly surprised by this, she wondered what was happening to him. He almost looked..angry?

But what about?

They had just talked about Sitwell and her disastrous flirting attem-.. _Oh_.

She felt a slight flutter in her heart and a little twist in her stomach when she realized that, maybe, Fitz could be bothered by _that_.

Could he be reacting as she did when she heard of Martha -who still pranced around her head as Black Widow-Natasha Romanoff-?

Could he-?

She didn't dare to hope..

-:-

He put his beer down, feeling the little flair in his empty stomach as the liquid reached it. His mind was a jumble of thoughts: he was scouring through every conversation he had had with Jemma, trying to see if she ever mentioned something about her ideal man or type.

He raked through his memories and only found some random comment during movies on how this guy had a nice voice or this other one had nice eyes.. Nothing else.

He knew her enough to know that she wasn't so..shallow to judge a person by looks alone. She was the sort of person that could see past the exterior appearance and appreciate the true core of an individual.

Just like she had done with him.

She had seen past the lanky, quiet and tech-addicted sixteen year old Fitz that everyone else saw and appreciated plain Leo. And had stuck with him ever since.

And now, some _bloody_, gorgeous headed, superior agent who was about her height came along and- Oh. _Oh_.

He blinked for a moment when Jemma's words to Sitwell came to his mind again.

_He_ was about her height, wasn't he? And.. _he_ was heavier, as in build, than her.

And.. didn't she say, once, _ages ago_, that he had one of the most beautiful heads (as in minds) that she had ever seen?

His heart thudded for a moment as this thought sunk in.

She couldn't-? No, wait... The thought alone was too overwhelming for him.

Feeling suddenly light-headed and knowing that it wasn't for the beer drank without eating anything, he dared to turn to his partner. Only to find her looking at him with searching eyes.

He felt something just twist and turn inside him as she looked at him that way. She could just read him so easily that it was frightening.

But, every time, he couldn't drop his stare immediately.

-:-

Skye watched the silent interaction between the two scientists and had to refrain from squealing: her plan was going on perfectly!

First stage, Jealousy: passed.

Second stage, Realization: passed.

Now off with the last stage: Confession.

She jumped out of her stool, startling the two scientists in front of her. Ward didn't even bat an eye.

"So..I'm sort of hungry." she announced, putting her glass on the coaster on the table, "This scotch really burns everything away.. How do you drink this stuff without withering out, Ward?"

The man smirked, taking another sip of his drink.

"You're a light-weight, rookie." he replied, earning an eye-roll from the brunette.

"Yeah..or maybe your robot, metal body just takes in the liquor as though it was water. Sorry, _oil_."

Unseen by both, Fitz and Simmons shared a glance and a smile as they witnessed their banter yet again.

The engineer stood up too.

"I was actually going to make us something for dinner before _someone_ dragged me here to include me in this conversation." He shot a deadpanned look at Skye who had the grace to grimace as she saw how late it was.

"Oh..seriously? You still haven't had dinner?" Now she _did_ feel guilty..

"We were working on the prototype requested by Agent Coulson." Simmons remarked. "The vegetation-growth's cycle simulations took a while-"

"-and the actual blueprints of the solar device after calculating all the variables came afterwards-" Fitz added.

"-then we had to come up with the correct balance for the insemination and fertilization pods along with the device's shielding case." Simmons finished.

Skye stared at them.

"What was that whole prototype thing about?" she asked, after her brain had tried to translate what the two scientists were talking about.

"It's a solar powered device that allows the growth of vegetation or crops in desert-like locations." Simmons explained.

"S.H.I.E.L.D wants to try it in an area where an 0-8-4, full of some unknown power source, was found and literally obliterated any vegetation." Fitz stated.

"Fortunately, there weren't any inhabitants nearby but the sudden lack of life in the area could be suspicious, so we were asked to come up with a solution." Simmons concluded with a smile, looking at Fitz who grinned back. Both were unable to hide the pride of being asked to do a task that was quite impossible.

Skye watched how the two just completed and complemented each other's thoughts as though they were sharing the same mind. This amazed her more than their actual genius.

'They seriously have to have a psychic link...' she thought.

She watched as the two looked at each other for a moment before looking away, faint blushes coloring their faces.

'And they _so_ like each other..' she mused with a eye-roll.

"Okaay.." she said, slanting a look at the engineer. "Since I'm the one that got you to be late, I'll help you make something to eat."

"That's just because _you're_ hungry." Fitz remarked, arching a brow.

"Shut up, Fitz and let's go."

She pushed the man towards the kitchenette, ignoring his protests and turned to the others. "Be back in couple of minutes."

She quickly dropped a look at Ward.

She would deal with Fitz but Simmons was his job.

The man nodded imperceptibly.

Game on.

* * *

Please, leave a review..:)


	4. Chapter 4

So...I'm not sure about the length of this story anymore..

I'm following the flow and writing down anything that comes up to my mind. I suppose it will be another couple of chapters long...but I honestly cannot assure that.

Anyway, I hope you'll like this chapter and leave a review.. :)

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN AGENTS OF SHIELD.

* * *

_Jealous_

-:-

Taken from the Oxford online dictionary:

**jealous. **Pronunciation:/ˈdʒɛləs/ _adjective. _**Origin. **Middle English: from Old French '_gelos'_, from medieval Latin '_zelosus'._

Definition #3: fiercely protective of one's rights or possessions

-:-

Jemma watched Fitz and Skye disappear in the kitchen and promptly ignored the dull twist in her stomach whenever she saw them interact. It had gotten better now compared to the beginning when Fitz would fawn over the hacker and she had to suppress a frown whenever her body reacted like this.

She blinked when she realized that she was jealous. Before... Now...

_Jealous_.

She had never been jealous of anything or anyone.

Not until Fitz came along...

Oh. Dear.

"Something wrong?"

She looked up abruptly and saw Ward staring at her, glass set on the table. She had almost forgotten that he was there.

"N-No." she replied, smiling slightly, "I was just lost in my thoughts. Sorry, Ward, I was quite rude to ignore you."

The man shook his head.

"You are tired: it's comprehensible." he said, "No need to apologize.

"So are you." she commented, eyeing the bags under his eyes.

"I'll just wait for the two chatterboxes to be back and then I'll call it a day."

"Chatterboxes?" she laughed out. The man smiled wryly.

"Can you find any other way to describe Skye and Fitz?" he asked. "I deal with Skye every day and she talks non-stop about everything _and_ nothing at the same time. And Fitz talked non-stop during our mission: during the trip to the boundary lines, during the hide-out, during the missions itself.."

She chuckled.

"He tends to ramble when he's nervous." She remembered their days at the Academy, studying together, where he would go on for hours about the mechanical structure and functioning of anything. She once had to endure an hour's worth ramble on the functioning of a calculator. "What did he talk about? Mechanics? Electronics?"

"You."

She was very glad that she was sitting down because she was sure that if she had been standing, her legs would have just given away.

"W-What?" she asked, looking at Ward as though he was joking. But this was _Ward_ and even though he might have softened and was a bit more easy-going, there wasn't the slightest possibility that he would be pulling a prank on her.

"I didn't keep track of everything: I must have zoned him out of my mind at some point.. But I do remember him talking about you two at the Academy. You and a..Faraday cup accident?" She blushed at this. "And then he went on for a hell of a long time about that sandwich you made and that he couldn't eat because of me.."

"He didn't eat it?!" she exclaimed, sitting straighter. She felt a sudden twitch of hurt across her chest: why would Fitz lie to her about it?

"No, I had to dispose of it since we were hiding and escaping from Russian men and searching dogs. A prosciutto sandwich would have exposed us as much a neon-light arrow sign over our heads."

She nodded slowly, realization sinking in. It never occurred to her that giving Fitz the sandwich, his favorite sandwich, could put him in a dangerous spot. She hadn't been so perceptive to realize all the variables of a two man mission in conflicted lands. Her field experiences were so little that it never occurred to her that a searching party with dogs would catch the scent of smoked ham easily.

She could have endangered them. Fitz could have been hurt..or died because of her bloody sandwich..

Ward stared at her, he saw the way her shoulders slumped down a little, the way her eyes clouded.

"Don't feel guilty about it." he remarked, "Field missions have hundreds.._thousands_ of variables. Even a genius like you or Fitz can't predict and know what could happen out there."

She looked up at him, knowing that his words were right but nevertheless, the feeling lingered in her body.

"And..I suppose he didn't tell you anything because he knew you'd feel guilty.." Ward added. "He cares for you."

She blinked at his words, recalling Fitz's expression when she asked about the sandwich.

He had looked at her so intently, as though seeing her for the first time. She had had the feeling of being x-rayed as his blue eyes were fixed on her.

"Yes.." she said softly, a warm fuzz going through her body. Fitz knew her so well that he could even prevent her from feeling bad..

He did care for her: he always did.

And he _did_ show some jealousy towards her.

So maybe -_maybe_- there could be a chance that her feelings could be reciprocated.

Ignoring the tick-tacking of her heart, she looked up and saw Ward staring at her with an odd expression; if she didn't know better, she would think that he was almost..smiling smugly.

"Ward.." she asked tentatively, "Are you drunk by any chance?"

The man looked at her with a blank expression, eyebrows raising at the question.

"No.." he replied, "_Why_ are you asking?"

"You're behaving..oddly." At the man's deadpanned stare, she quickly added. "No offense meant but.. You're more _talkative_ than usual."

"None taken...I think." Simmons chuckled softly and he smiled wryly again. "I just re-valued Fitz after this mission. My opinion on you changed after you jumped off the plane and I told you so." She smiled slightly, remembering how he told her that she had been very brave.

"My opinion on Fitz changed a bit that day too: he was on the verge of jumping after you without any training or anything.. That meant that he was equally brave or insane."

Jemma fought back a shiver at the thought of Fitz plunging through the sky after her. She still had nightmares of falling, without end, and the thought that he could have followed her..She really didn't want to think about it.

"And after this mission in Ossetia, he showed me that he was brave, loyal and a true companion, someone that I could truly trust. Someone that had my back.."

"A Partner." she said with a smile. "You're listing all the things that make him a perfect partner."

She blushed slightly when she realized the double meaning that the word _partner_ could have. The way _she_ had meant it in both ways.. Hopefully Ward wouldn't cotton on..

The man barely hid his smile. He didn't know which were Skye's tactics with Fitz but he had a clear idea of what to do with Simmons. He would plant the idea, the seed that would find a perfect soil in her brain and heart, and she would do the rest.

He hated to admit it but his Rookie was right: FitzSimmons were so ridiculously in love with each other, he didn't know _how_ they didn't know it yet.

"Well, yes I suppose so.. You'd know that, wouldn't you?" He decided to ignore the lingering blush on the bio-chemist's face. "Though I do wonder how you deal with him every moment.. He's a bit of a dork, gets easily flustered and cannot make negotiations for the life of him.." He smirked at the slight frown on Simmons' face and changed his tone. "But then he manages to get out of a sticky situation with mobsters making friends with them, chatting them up and drinking a shot of vodka, manages to soften their leader, who looked like a fierce middle-aged bear woman, and gets to be called Myrshka.."

"Middle-aged woman?" she blurted out, eyes widening. No, now wait a minute..

She _still_ had Martha-Natasha Romanoff plaguing her mind and make her stomach twist uncomfortably.

"Yeah.. the leader looked like a typical middle-aged, plump aunt...with a really menacing face and thugs on her side." Ward reminisced the woman with a mild grimace.

Suddenly, Martha-Natasha Romanoff disappeared from her head in wisp of cloudy smoke, leaving her mind oddly clear.

Jemma never felt so foolish in her life.

She never felt so relieved either.

Fitz had called an old auntie sweetheart. She could accept that.

And maybe, she could accept the fact that she was, indeed, in love with her best friend and partner.

It was so obviously evident now.

Ward watched Simmons as a blush made it's way on her face, the soft smile and nervous wrangling of her hands on her lap.

'Mission accomplished.' he thought.

Now it was all up to Skye with Fitz...

* * *

Please, leave a review.


	5. Chapter 5

I managed to finish this chapter. Sorry if it's short but I feel that if wrote more, adding details here and there, I might just lose focus on the story and lose whatever plot it (still) has. And I should be studying rather than writing... My guilty conscience is tormenting me..

So, I hope you like this chapter. Please leave a review.. :)

* * *

-:-

Taken from the Oxford online dictionary:

**jealous. **Pronunciation:/ˈdʒɛləs/ _adjective. _**Origin. **Middle English: from Old French '_gelos'_, from medieval Latin '_zelosus'._

Definition #3: fiercely protective of one's rights or possessions

-:-

* * *

The kitchenette was small and compact. Everything was stored inside following an order that everyone on the Bus knew. After these months living together, every member of the team had acquired a small space in it that was only theirs. There was a tacit, silent pact to not take anything from those shelves, cupboard or fridge sections without having asked the owner.

All in all, no one ever stole anything from the other.

Fitz walked over to the cupboard, opening it and raiding the shelf that he shared with Simmons. He was starving..

"Please, tell me that you aren't going to eat crisps and popcorn for dinner." Skye said, opening the fridge, "Seriously, _I'll_ cook something for you instead.."

"Is that a threat?" he asked with an arched brow and promptly ducked as the hacker threw an apple at him. It hit his shoulder and rolled on the ground. "Hey, you shouldn't throw food!"

"Yeah?.And you shouldn't turn down a gentle offer!" Skye picked the apple with a frown. "You jerk.."

Fitz rolled his eyes at her, rubbing the spot where he had been hit and resumed to gather things for dinner.

He quickly pulled out some bread, cheese and a bag of popcorn (he could eat while making the sandwiches..). He made his way to the fridge, eyeing Skye who was still glaring at him. He quickly took out some lettuce, mayonnaise and fresh cream cheese. He then saw a plastic box with prosciutto, buffalo mozzarella and a small bowl of pesto aioli.

Grinning slightly, he took that out of the fridge too and put everything on the counter. Feeling a bit guilty, he turned to Skye.

"I'll make you a sandwich as an apology for my comment, all right?" He said, taking out some plates. "Just don't sulk around me."

"I'm not sulking!" she remarked, slapping her hand against his arm. He winced.

"Hey! That hurt! You're training to be a field agent: don't use me as your punching bag!"

Skye smirked and perched herself on a free corner of the counter. She watched as Fitz took a bowl, poured some popcorn in it and put a handful in his mouth.

"Seriously though.. You eat junk food _all_ the time and yet you're in shape. How's that even possible?"

Fitz turned around, swallowing the last bit of popcorn.

"I don't eat junk food all-"

"Fitz, you have movie nights with Simmons whenever we aren't on a mission. I've seen you carry _bowls_ of popcorn to your room." Skye huffed. "This is so unfair... I work my _ass_ out with Ward and have to keep track of the nutritional values of anything I eat and all that crap. You know what? I'll ask Simmons. If she eats even half as much as you do, she must have some secret to keep that model body of hers."

Fitz nearly sliced his finger, rather than the cheese, as he heard that comment.

_Model body?_

His mind wandered dangerously to places where it shouldn't be going and he stopped hearing Skye's rambling. Images of his partner throughout the years of their friendship flashed through his mind. Snippets of her in various moments because in all these years of living together, he _did_ get a glimpse of her.

He really shouldn't be thinking of her in that way.

Not here in the kitchen with Skye.

Maybe in the privacy of his bunk...? _No_.

He had to stop. _Now_.

He blew a breath through gritted teeth and fixed Skye's sandwich: cheese, a slice of prosciutto, lettuce and mayonnaise on two slices of white bread. He put it on a plate and handed it to her.

"Here." he said. The hacker took the plate with a beaming smile.

"Thanks, Fitz." she chirped and took a bite of the sandwich. Smiling slightly, he turned to make dinner for him and Jemma. Sometimes having Skye around was like having an hyper little sister..

"You know, for somehow who lives on popcorn, you make great sandwiches." All right, make it an _annoying_ little sister.

"I do eat healthy stuff." he scoffed, cutting the mozzarella in thin slices. "Simmons' got me in a strict diet regimen."

"Has she now?" Had he been looking he would have seen (and feared) the grin on Skye's face.

"Of course. Who do you think bought all those fresh fruit and vegetables?"

"Dunno.. I'd have thought May or A.C. I can totally see them as super agents who can defeat aliens and won't eat carbs because they're not good, eat vegs because they're healthy and stuff like that.."

Leo snorted. He made a mental to never have a meal with Agent May or Agent Coulson or he'll end up laughing. And then trembling for his life when they asked for the reason of his hilarity.

"She's always been strict on our eating habits. Movie nights' food are the only exception on the diet that she..well, _we_ allow ourselves." He had come to understand and appreciate Jemma's obsession on eating healthily after all these years.

"So.." He heard approaching footsteps and the resident hacker was by his side, munching on her sandwich. "You're currently swallowing mouthfuls of popcorn behind her back so that she won't know and in the meantime, making fresh, healthy sandwiches for dinner to make her happy?"

Fitz glared at her.

"_No._" he replied, barely hiding his annoyance as he saw the smirk on her face. "I'm taking the bowl out for her too. We haven't eaten a bloody thing since lunch: just being drinking tea. I doubt she'll be complaining about eating habits at the moment."

He went on preparing the sandwiches. He was _bloody_ starving.

"What's the green stuff you're putting in there?" Skye asked, as she put her plate away. She seemed to have enjoyed the sandwich.

"Pesto Aioli." he replied and looked at his side. The hacker had a blank expression. "Simmons' made it. It complements the buffalo mozzarella and prosciutto's tastes."

"That's one weird sandwich..."

"It's delicious." Fitz grinned, recalling how he had wolfed down his first one, back at the Academy, one day that Jemma had made lunch for both.

"Did Simmons invent it?" Fitz's expression was too eager..and adoring. It _had_ to be made by Simmons.

"Yeah... she likes to experiment when cooking. She pretty much applies what she does in the lab: precision, measurements and chemistry. And it all comes out pretty good."

Skye snorted.

"Of course she would be a great cook." she remarked. "Simmons' like the poster girl for the perfect woman: smart, great cook, freaking neat and clean, great character, gentle and caring.. Seriously, _any_ guy would just love her."

Leo froze at her words.

She was right. Any man with a bit of a brain would love Jemma.

There had been many men (_too many_, for his tastes..) that had tried to woo her back at the Academy or at Sci-Ops: brilliant scientists and towering specialists had lingered by their lab or in the hallways, asking her out for a cup of coffee or dinner.

And she had accepted every now and then, blushing furiously, looking almost incredulous that she was receiving that kind of attention from someone.

He had always ignored the nagging feeling in his chest, defining it protectiveness. Jemma was his best friend and house mate , once in Sci-Ops, so it was natural for him to be protective.

He now realized that he had been jealous the whole damn time.

None of those men had ever lingered too much. Jemma would date them for weeks or months and then they would just disappear and she wouldn't be gone for dinners or walks or dates where he knew that more than just words were exchanged.

And he wouldn't be alone in his room, brooding and ignoring the feelings in his heart.

He never asked her about them. Relationships had always been a rather secretive subject for both. He rarely spoke of the women he had dated: he just mentioned dates or places and sometimes gave a name but nothing more. She would do the same.

Maybe he had been so secretive because he was terrified to hear that she was liking one of these men. That she was falling in love.

Dear God... he had been in love with her _the whole time_.

Skye let the words linger in the air before glancing at Fitz. His hands had stilled over a slice of bread.

She knew that she was messing with his head, talking about Simmons and her being perfect (because she was totally aware that the bio-chemist was indeed perfect) but she wanted him to man up and just realize the truth.

The guy was in love with his best friend who in turn was completely in love with him.

Really..for a couple of geniuses, they were _so_ dense.

And now.. the final shove towards her goal...

"Well, Agent Sitwell seemed to be pretty taken by her." she mused. Fitz snapped out of his stupor.

"Hmm.. I heard." he muttered. Damn Agent Sitwell and his bloody head..

Skye failed to hide a grin at his tone but gratefully Fitz wasn't looking at her.

"He probably thought that Simmons was the all delicate and _'I-can't-do-anything-bad'_ type of girl. Could be his type.." She faked to think about this and watched as Fitz sliced bread with a bit too much force. "Anyway, I doubt he'll even look at Simmons without reaching for his gun if he ever sees her again. Seriously, _I_ freaked out when she shot him."

Leo smirked slightly as he finished making dinner. He was starting to appreciate the whole Night-Night gun episode now..

"To think that she didn't even want to help me at the beginning!" Skye exclaimed. "I like following the rules and doing what's expected of me: make me feel nice!"

Fitz stared at her. Her mimicry of Jemma's voice was hideous.

"You _really_ should stop doing that." he remarked. Skye ignored him and continued talking.

"And then I mention that you could be injured or tortured and she changes her mind and asks me what to do."

Leo stared at her.

Wait.._what?_

"What?" he asked, wondering if he had heard her well. Skye looked at him.

"The moment I mentioned you being in danger, Simmons' flipped from good to bad girl and helped me hack the HUB." Her dark eyes lingered on him. "She must really care for you, you know?"

Fitz looked at her, barely noticing the slightly knowing smile and stare. Her words just echoed throughout his head.

Jemma had done it for him.

For his safety.

She had risked a court-martial trial.

Risked to lose her career, her dreams..

For him.

His heart swelled. That had to mean something, right?

Maybe, she cared as much as he did.. Maybe, his feelings could be reciprocated..

Maybe she loved him too.

Skye saw how Fitz's eyes brightened suddenly and the soft smile that made it's way on his face.

She inwardly cheered. Her job was done and if Ward had done his, Simmons would be ready too.

Now the final act...

* * *

Please, leave a review.. :)


End file.
